


That was love (and it's an ache I still remember)

by coldflashwavebaby



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: Alpha Leonard Snart, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Dark Barry Allen, Divorce, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, M/M, Metahuman Leonard Snart, More like past Dark Barry, Multi, Omega Barry Allen, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Post Mpreg, Post-Episode: s02e16 Doomworld, Shit went down for him okay?, There's another relationship but I'm not going to add it because I don't want to spoil it, Time Travel, original child character - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-07-27
Packaged: 2019-11-28 08:52:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,348
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18206279
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/coldflashwavebaby/pseuds/coldflashwavebaby
Summary: The knock silenced all the good cheer. With no one else invited, Joe laid a hand on his gun and approached the door slowly. Cisco rose up, ready to blast them. Wally tensed.He opened the door, only to have someone push their way inside. Joe drew his gun. Cisco was about to blast whoever it was when Wally stuck out a hand to stop him. “Wait!”





	1. Chapter 1

The night was cold, dark, and rainy when a knock came at the front door of the West House.

 

Team Flash was celebrating a victory of Wally’s, or should they say _The Flash._ After gaining speed powers from the faux particle accelerator explosion that restored Barry’s powers, Wally decided to follow in his foster brother’s footsteps. Mostly because, right after Zoom’s defeat, Barry ran away.

 

That was Cisco’s theory, anyway. He still blamed Barry for not turning back time to save Dante and thought that his whole disappearance was out of shame or guilt. Iris wasn’t convinced, though, and neither was Joe, though he pretended to be. Iris knew he kept a nationwide search going on Barry, even a year after his disappearance.

 

The knock silenced all the good cheer. With no one else invited, Joe laid a hand on his gun and approached the door slowly. Cisco rose up, ready to blast them. Wally tensed.

 

He opened the door, only to have someone push their way inside. Joe drew his gun. Cisco was about to blast whoever it was when Wally stuck out a hand to stop him. “Wait!”

 

Everyone in the room froze, looking over the two figures. One was dressed in a ripped up, black leather jacket. The other’s identity was hidden by a trench coat thrown over them, though Iris could tell they were hunched and holding something to their chest.

 

Joe didn’t lower his weapon, but Cisco relaxed slightly. “Snart, what the hell…?”

 

“Don’t worry about me!” Leonard Snart ordered as the figure beside him started to slump against him. “Help _them_!”

 

Iris was the first to leap into action, grabbing the figure as they started falling to the floor. The jacket covering their head fell off, and Iris nearly let go.

 

“Barry?”

 

The speedster was pale, his body shaking. In his arms was a bundle of blankets. “Get him…” was all he said before his eyes rolled back in his head.

 

He pushed the bundle towards her, knocking her back enough that he fell in the floor. The bundle was heavier than she’d expected and moved in her arms in a way that almost made her drop it. Her father was there, catching it as it teetered in her arms. One of the blankets fell away, and Iris gasped.

 

There was a child in the blankets, no more than a year old.

 

\----------

 

Len knew that the Wests, Ramon, and Snow were waiting for an explanation from him. Barry passed out the second his son was safe, and West carried him to the couch to rest. But Len didn’t know much more than they did. All he really knew was that one second he was in the Oculus blowing up and the next, he was on some field in World War 1 with all of the Legends staring at him and Barry wielding a glowing spear and sobbing.

 

Little Teddy was already there. There was no alpha scent that pointed to the father. Barry’s omega pheromones were in distress. All of the Legends looked terrified of the omega. Sure, Gideon had given him a few details, but the Legends practically ran them off the ship once they landed in 2018.

 

“You can stop staring at me,” he drawled from his seat beside the couch. He shot a look over his shoulder at Iris West, Ramon, and Snow. Detective West was carrying Teddy up the stairs to sleep in Barry’s old room. Poor thing was just as exhausted as his dad. “Yes, I’m alive again. No, I don’t know what happened or what’s going on. Yes, I’m sticking around.”

 

“Why?” Leave it to Iris to ask the difficult question. “Why did you bring Barry here? Why do you care?”

 

“Because the Legends told me to.”

 

It was a partially honest answer. The Legends had been uncomfortable with Len being brought back from the dead, especially after just facing off against an evil version of him. Apparently, they wanted to get Barry as far from them as possible, too, because the first suggestion Hunter made was for Len to take him home and protect him. From what, no one would tell him.

 

“They said that someone needed to watch out for him and the kid, so they voluntold me to do it. The only way I’m walking out that door is if Barry wakes up and tells me to.”

 

They didn’t need to know that Barry saved his life. That he didn’t need telling to come and watch out for him and his son. If someone was putting them in danger, he’d watch their backs. It was the least he owed Barry.

 

Footsteps down the stairs silenced all other questions. West didn’t seem particularly happy, but finding out he was now a grandpa seemed to put a little skip in his step. “He’s cuddling one of Barry’s stuffed animals from when he was a kid. He should stay down for a bit until we get everything sorted out.”

 

He approached the couch, eyeing his son warily. When he caught sight of the claiming mark on his neck, West sighed. “How did this happen? Where has he been for the past year?”

 

“I don’t know a lot,” Len answered, brushing his fingers soothingly through Barry’s hair. “But I do know that he’s been through hell. And it’s been a lot longer than one year for him.”  

 

Barry’s family and team all frowned in confusion, but Barry chose that moment to groan in his sleep. Len’s alpha instincts reared, and he spun back to face the omega. Barry’s face was twisted in pain and anguish. Len moved from his seat on the coffee table to kneel in front of him.

 

“Shhh,” he whispered, brushing his fingers up and down Barry’s cheek the way he used to when Lisa had nightmares. “You’re safe, Scarlet. You’re home.”

 

“Teddy…” Barry groaned, his eyes creeping open. “Where is he?”

 

Len gave him a tiny smile and took his hand. “He’s safe, too. West took him upstairs and put him to bed.”

 

He tensed up instantly, his eyes darted around nervously, landing on each person’s face. When they landed on Iris, though, his entire body relaxed. Len pushed down the alpha instinct to growl. This was _his_ omega, _his_ to protect and care for...but it wasn’t, was it? There was a claiming bite on Barry that hadn’t come from him or anyone in the room. He was some mystery alpha’s omega, someone who Barry wanted to keep secret from everyone.

 

“Iris…” There was a longing in Barry’s eye, and all jealousy melted away. How long, for Barry, had it been since he’d last seen her? The woman he used to love, who he’d pictured a life with? Len and Barry both knew those days were gone, replaced by the cold memories of his questionable past.

 

Nevertheless, when Iris fell to the floor beside the couch and wrapped her arms around his neck in a tight embrace, Barry burrowed his face into her hair. After a few seconds, they pulled apart, and Barry had tears in his eyes.

 

“Barry,” Iris said, “where have you been? We were celebrating after Zoom, and then...you were just gone.”

 

Barry lowered his eyes and glanced over at Len. They went back to everyone in the room, taking them in--Cisco’s anger, Iris’ relief, Joe’s curiosity, Caitlin’s urge to help. Finally, he sighed.

 

“There’s a lot I...I don’t want to talk about,” he said. “But what I can tell you is that, after our talk on the porch, I was so broken. I thought it was the most broken I would ever feel, and I couldn’t take it. I ran into the past, saved my mom, and created an alternate reality.”

 

Len widened his eyes. He hadn’t known that part at all. The others seemed to share his sentiment.

 

Cisco let out a humorless laugh. “I see. So, you’ll go back in time to save your mother, but you couldn’t save Dante. I see how high on the list I go. Thanks, buddy.”

 

Barry frowned. “Dante’s dead?”

 

Cisco threw his hands up. “Great to see how forgettable we all are in a year.”

 

“It wasn’t a year, Cisco.” Barry sighed. “That’s...that’s what I’m trying to tell you. I ran back and changed Flashpoint after three months, but something went wrong. I was thrown into the timestream, and my time travel ability was unpredictable at best and non-existent at worst.”

 

His eyes went back to Iris, who grabbed his hand and squeezed.

 

“I couldn’t get home,” he continued. “I was lost in time, living in a future that was...unspeakable. For you all, it’s been a year, but that’s only because of the Waverider crew. For me...it’s been over ten years since I’ve been home.”

 

Everyone but Len reeled. He’d guessed that Barry was older--he no longer carried himself as a young hero; instead, it was like there was a trauma to be lived every time he closed his eyes, a weight on his shoulders he could never shake.

 

Before anyone could say anything else, a cry echoed from upstairs. Barry jumped to his feet quicker than Len would’ve expected, considering he’d had to carry him in, and ran at superspeeds upstairs.

 

Len was on his feet the next second, running up the stairs after him with Joe, Iris, Cisco, and Caitlin on his heels. Barry’s old room was the first on the right, and Len ran to the door, pausing when he saw Barry on the bed, curled around his son like he was waiting for some kind of attack.

 

“Damn…” he heard Joe whisper behind him. “What happened in those ten years?”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shorter chapter, but I'm going to be dropping hints of what happened to Barry in those ten years and who his alpha is. Also, this story takes place during S4 of the Flash.

**Chapter 2**

 

_ “Barry,” the alpha urged, “please, give me the Spear. You know what’s going to happen if you let them restore the timeline.” _

 

_ Barry glanced over at their son, still nestled in Jax’s arms. If the timeline was set right, none of their marriage would’ve ever happened--including Teddy. His heart lurched and stomach twisted.  _

 

_ “Please, Barry,” Sara said from his other side, approaching him like he was a dangerous animal. “Please. It’s the only way.” _

 

_ “Could you do it?”  _

 

_ Sara froze in place, shocked at the question.  _

 

_ “Honestly. Could any of you make the choice between reality and your child? I carried him, I gave birth to him. I don’t care about Doomworld, or about where he came from. He’s my son. How am I supposed to choose what you want over him?” _

 

_ Sara opened her mouth like she was going to answer, but fell short.  _

 

_ A flash of light. Iris’ face. Falling into Len’s arms and finally feeling safe, despite the shocked looks on everyone else’s faces.  _

 

_ “I love you…” an echoing voice whispered. “I will never leave you again…”  _

 

Barry shot up awake with a gasp. His first instinct was to check on Teddy, curled up against his side and sleeping like an angel. Then, his eyes went to the lump on the floor. He smiled, despite himself. It’d been so long since he’d seen the real Leonard Snart, the hero he’d been so convinced was there. To find him sleeping at the foot of his bed like a watchdog amused Barry more than anything. 

 

He forced himself to climb out of bed, tucking in Teddy and giving him a kiss as he did, and crept out of the room. It was already morning, but outside was still dark and dreary from the rain, mirroring how Barry had felt since that stupid lab. 

 

When he made it to the bottom of the stairs, he paused. The others were still there--Joe, Iris, Cisco, Caitlin, and Wally--only now, Cecile was with them. They were all talking, discussing Barry, Len, and Teddy. He pressed himself against the wall and listened.

 

“...said that the Legends told him to stay with them,” Iris said. “Maybe it’s one of them? I mean, Rory and Ray are both alphas. I don’t know about the others, but we all know there are new members to the team that could be Teddy’s other parent.” 

 

Joe hummed. “That’s a good point. Though I hope to hell it ain’t Rory.” 

 

There was a general murmur of agreement, and Barry almost felt offended on Mick’s behalf. 

 

“Then again,” Caitlin spoke up, “it’s been ten years. His alpha could be someone that we don’t even know.” 

 

“We could always ask,” Wally suggested.

 

“I think,” Cecile finally said, “that you’re all missing the point.” 

 

The room went quiet. 

 

“Barry and his son are here, but whatever alpha he has isn’t. That means either the alpha is dead or Barry doesn’t want to be around them anymore. It doesn’t matter which one. What matters is that he came home because he’s safe here. Hassling him about it is only going to bring up bad memories. He’s here now and so is Teddy, and we need to make sure that we’re respecting their boundaries. We don’t know what happened, and Barry will tell us if and when he’s ready.”

 

He decided that was the time to make himself known. He stepped off the stairs, and the whole group turned guiltily to look at him. He could imagine how he looked--he’d let his facial hair grow out over the past few years, his hair was a little longer than he used to keep it, not to mention the scars on his body none of them had seen yet. The future wasn’t a kind place for metahumans, especially not speedsters. 

 

“You don’t need to worry about my alpha,” he said. “He’s dead. I killed him myself.” 

 

He didn’t wait to see what their reactions were to the revelation. He was hungry, and he wanted the Eggo waffles that Iris hid in the back of the freezer. He strode past them and into the kitchen, sighing when he heard a pair of footsteps behind him. 

 

“I don’t want to talk, Iris.” 

 

“Good. I don’t really know what to say.” He spun around to see Cisco leaning against the counter behind him, anger and sorrow and confusion all over his face. Barry deflated, taking his time to walk over to the freezer, grab the Eggos, and put them in the toaster. Maybe by the time he was done, one of them would know what to say. 

 

By the time he dropped them in, however, he was still at a loss for words, except, “I’m sorry about Dante.” 

 

Cisco huffed. “Everyone’s sorry. Just not enough to do a damn thing about it.” 

 

Barry sighed and turned back to face his best friend. “Cisco...if I could go back and save Dante, I would. I promise you that. But after creating Flashpoint...knowing the things I know and seeing all the horror and havoc that came from that choice...I can’t. I wish I’d never tried with my mom. I wish I hadn’t had beg for her to be murdered. I wish I hadn’t gotten lost trying to come home. I wish I hadn’t…”

 

_ Wish I hadn’t fallen in love with a monster.  _

 

He squeezed his eyes shut and took a deep breath. “I’m an idiot. I’ve been such a naive idiot for so long. I can’t make those kinds of choices anymore. I have Teddy to worry about. If I were to wipe him out of existence because the Speed Force wanted to punish me…”

 

His heart felt like ice at the thought. He could still remember the way the Spear of Destiny had ripped Doomworld apart, how scared he’d been that it’d take Teddy with it. When he’d seen Teddy still nestled in Jax’s arms, a relief settled in his chest that he’d never felt before. 

 

Arms wrapped around him, pulling him back into the present. Cisco was hugging him. Cisco was shushing him, asking him not to cry. Barry was crying...when had that started happening?

 

“What the hell happened over those ten years, Barry?” Cisco whispered. “What did they do to you?”

 

He was broken, and a sociopath helped put him back together again. No wonder he was so messed up.  

 

“I wish I could tell you,” he whispered back. “I wish I could tell all of you, but then you’d hate me even more than you already do.” 

 

Cisco pulled away with a frown. “I don’t hate you. Dude, you’re one of my best friends. I’m still pissed, yeah, but I can’t hate you. It’s going to take some time--both to get over the Dante thing and to wrap my head around you being almost forty now--but I think we’re going to be okay.”

 

Barry laughed tearfully, relieved that maybe his life didn’t have to change so drastically. “Good, because I wanted to ask if you want to be Teddy’s godfather.” 

 

Barry knew right then that Teddy was going to have Cisco wrapped around his little finger. He hadn’t even really met him yet, and already, Cisco’s entire face lit up at the question. 

 

“Dude,” he said, “your kid is going to have  _ the raddest  _ toys.” 

 

Barry laughed again, and Cisco pulled him into another hug. It was going to be okay, he realized. It was all over, and everything would be alright.

 

\----------

 

Len woke up to something warm against his side. At first, he thought it was Lisa--little Lisa, hiding in his bed to get away from Lewis’ cruelty. Then, he remembered--Lisa was a grown woman now. So who was curled up against him? 

 

His eyes snapped open and his body tensed, ready to fight until he heard a small coo. When he glanced down, he frowned. Barry’s son had moved onto the floor with him at some point, probably after Barry woke up this morning, and decided he wanted someone familiar. 

 

Len sighed. He’d heard all about the other him in ‘Doomworld’--the violent thief who didn’t earn the name ‘Captain Cold’, but was given the gun and a target and told to fire. That Leonard Snart had never faced off against the Flash, had never had the pleasure of meeting Barry Allen...except, he had. Mick told him all about how Barry would bring Teddy around and how the other him would dote on and spoil the baby rotten. It didn’t surprise him--he loved babies, and if Teddy was even half as loveable as Barry Allen, other him never had a chance. 

 

Teddy didn’t understand that he wasn’t the same Leonard Snart. He just knew that, among all the craziness and change of surroundings, there were two faces that had stayed the same--Barry’s and his. 

 

Shaking his head, Len moved to his knees, scooped the child up so his head rested on Len’s shoulder, and rose to his feet. He shushed Teddy as he moved through the halls and towards the stairs. 

 

“I think you forgot something,” he whisper-yelled as he came down the final few steps. Barry was sitting in the living room with his family. When he saw Len with Teddy, he jumped to his feet. 

 

“Oh my god,” he said, running to Len’s side to take Teddy, “I’m so sorry. Did he wake up?”

 

“He’s fine, Barry,” Len assured as he helped settle Teddy into Barry’s arms. “He just needs a familiar scent.”

 

He had so many questions, just like everyone else in the room, but it was obvious that Barry wasn’t in the answering mood. Instead, he stepped back and shoved his hands in his pockets. “Well, this has been nice, but I have a sister to visit who thinks I’m dead, so…” he turned to leave. 

 

“What happened to you sticking around to watch after Barry and his son?” Snow called out. He looked back at the distrustful expressions everyone but Barry was aiming at him. 

 

He smiled coldly. “I think I can leave for a few hours without something happening. Besides, it’s not like his family and friends are going to let anything happen to him, right?” 

 

Without waiting for an answer, he opened the door and prepared to leave. Suddenly, Team Flash’s phones started beeping like crazy. 

 

_ Shit.  _

 

West was the first to take out his phone, and his eyes widened fearfully. “A breach opened in the middle of the street downtown,” he read out. “It caused a bus accident.”


	3. Chapter 3

Len collapsed onto the floor. Barry rushed to his side, handing Teddy off to Cisco before falling to his knees beside him. 

 

“Len?” he asked, but the other man sat there cradling his head and shivering in pain. “Leonard, are you okay?”

 

He didn’t answer. Barry dipped his head down to look at Len’s face, nearly falling back when he noticed the blue flames in Len’s eyes. The Oculus, he realized. When it blew, it must have affected Len’s DNA. Whatever caused that breach triggered it, somehow.

 

“Len, you need to calm down,” he said in the most soothing way he possibly could. He thought back to his alpha, when he would get in one of his shitty moods, how all Barry had to do was stroke the scent gland on his neck to calm him down again. He did the same to Len, whose shaking began to slow. “Get through it. You can do it.” 

 

Finally, the flames died down, and Len let out a shuddered breath. Barry released his neck and rose to his feet. “What the hell was that?”

 

Len breathed deeply for a few more minutes before standing up. When he looked back at everyone else, his eyes were full of fear. “Someone’s changing the future,” he said. “I don’t know how I know that, but I could see the entire timeline change.”

 

Someone shifted on the other side of the room, and Barry jumped. He’d forgotten the others were there. “What changed?” Cecile asked. 

 

Len shook his head. “I don’t know. I don’t even know  _ how  _ I know.” 

 

“The Oculus,” Barry said. The rest of the room looked to him, but he was entirely focused on Len. “When it blew, it must have affected your DNA. Somehow, you’re connected to the timeline.” 

 

“Peachy,” he growled, rubbing the heel of his hand against his forehead. “How do I make it stop?”

 

Barry looked to Cisco and Caitlin, knowing the gears in their minds were already turning. “We need to get him down to the lab and examine him,” Caitlin decided, grabbing her coat off the back of the couch.

 

“Wally and I’ll go check out the bus site,” Joe said. He turned to Barry. “You coming, or going with them?”

 

Barry hesitated. The real question was,  _ are you still the Flash?  _ And that answer Barry knew in his bones--no. 

 

He wasn’t the Flash anymore. The Flash died strapped down to a lab table, his soon-to-be Alpha yelling for the scientists around them to stop over the sounds of Barry’s screams. The Flash died when they finally broke free, murdering everyone in the lab and burning it to the ground. 

 

The Flash had been dead for ten years. After all the things he’d done, he didn’t deserve to wear the cowl ever again. 

 

He shook his head. “I’ll head to STAR Labs. Spending as much time in the time stream as I have over the past few years, I have a unique perspective that might come in handy.” 

 

Joe nodded, though Barry could tell he didn’t believe him. 

 

\----------

 

_ He was onstage singing in 1942. He’d been in the time period for about two weeks, keeping an eye on the Justice Society of America. Rex Tyler frequented the club he’d started headlining, making it so easy to keep tabs on them.  _

 

_ He knew his alpha didn’t like it, but he’d argued it was the smartest play. No one in the 1940’s ever suspected an omega of being dangerous. They would never suspect he was anything more than just a lounge singer.  _

 

_ That is, until the Legends decided to walk in during one of his sets.  _

 

\----------

 

Barry tried not to laugh at Len’s childish grumbles as Caitlin drew blood. Who would’ve known that Captain Cold was afraid of needles? He sat on the floor of the cortex with Teddy, who was taking advantage of his new freedom and walking in circles around him. 

 

Barry never thought he could love someone as much as he loved Teddy. He pulled Barry out of the dark pit he’d fallen into after being tortured and broken.  

 

“Dadee,” Teddy garbled, walking straight into Barry’s arms. He babbled in his cute baby language, and Barry couldn’t help but smile. 

 

“Hello, my little chaser,” he said, picking up his son and sitting him in his lap. Teddy’s hands went for the chain tucked into his shirt. Barry pulled his necklace off and put it in his son’s hands. The gold ring hanging from it. The ruby sparkled in the fluorescent lights as Teddy jerked it away and started gnawing on the band. 

 

Barry didn’t mind. He only kept it to give to Teddy one day, when he was old enough to hear the story behind it. 

 

“Enough, enough!” 

 

He glanced back over at Len, who was pushing Caitlin out of the way, finally done with the poking and prodding. 

 

“Look,” he growled, shrugging his jacket back on, “I need to see my sister. I need to change my clothes--this is literally what I  _ died in _ .” Maybe he did it subconsciously, but his eyes went immediately to Barry like he was asking permission to leave. Barry resisted the urge to smile at him. Even when he was trying to be a dick, Len was a good man. 

 

“Go see your sister,” he said. “I don’t need any protection. It’s okay.” 

 

He could see the guilt gnawing at him, but he pushed it down and put his frosty demeanor on. “See ya round, Team Flash,” he called over his shoulder. “Call me if you find out anything about my DNA.” 

 

Barry shook his head as Len strutted out of the room. He barely reached out in time to stop Teddy from waddling after him. “No, no, little chaser,” he said, pulling his son back into his lap. “Uncle Len is going off on his own. He’ll be back later, though.”

 

Teddy’s attention went back to the ring.

 

“Barry?” He turned at Caitlin’s call. She was giving him and Teddy an uneasy look. “I’d like to run some tests on the two of you if that’s alright. I know that you’ve been through a lot, but I’d like to make sure that Teddy is healthy and that you…”

 

She trailed off, and Barry gave a small nod. “You want to make sure that I’m not shutting down after losing my alpha.”

 

That happened sometimes. When an omega lost an alpha, sometimes, even if they didn’t mentally give up, their bodies would start shutting down in grief until the omega was sickly and near invalid. Barry helped Teddy off his lap and pushed himself to his feet. 

 

“I get it,” he replied. “Besides, Teddy hasn’t seen a doctor in a bit, so he could probably use a check-up.”

 

Taking Teddy in his arms, he followed Caitlin back into the med lab and took a seat on the edge of the bed. 

 

She took a step towards them, but Teddy quickly hid his face in Barry’s shirt. Barry sighed. “Sorry. He thinks you’re someone else.”

 

He bent his head down and kissed Teddy’s forehead. “I know you’re used to Frost, baby,” he whispered low enough that the others couldn’t hear, “but this is Dr. Caitlin. She’s really nice, and she’s just going to make sure that you’re not sick, okay?”

 

Teddy looked up at him with wide eyes, and Barry gave him an encouraging smile. “Don’t worry. I’ll be here the whole time.” 

 

He looked to Caitlin and nodded. The doctor approached slowly and cautiously, a warm smile on her lips that Barry was sure Teddy wasn’t expecting. “Hey, Teddy,” she said, dropping to her knees in front of them. “I promise that I’m going to be as quick as I can, and then you can go back to playing while I look over your daddy, okay?” 

 

Teddy gave her a once over, his eyes so calculating that Barry couldn’t help seeing his Alpha in their child. Finally, he nodded. 

 

Caitlin pulled out her stethoscope. “I’m going to use this to listen to your heart, okay?” She exhaled on the chest piece and then pressed it to Teddy’s heart. Barry held his breath. He knew what she’d probably hear, but prayed anyway that maybe, just maybe, his son had gotten lucky. 

 

Caitlin paused. Her brow crinkled. She moved to the other side of Teddy’s chest. Her lips pursed. Finally, she removed the stethoscope and smiled. “You were so good, Teddy.” Her eyes darted up to Barry. “I think that’s enough for now. Why don’t you run over and see if Cisco has any toys for you to play with?”

 

Teddy climbed out of Barry’s lap and toddled away, only stumbling twice on his way over to where Cisco was seated. Once he was out of earshot, Caitlin turned to Barry. “Teddy doesn’t have a heartbeat, Barry,” she said, her voice dropping to a whisper. “Either that or it’s beating too fast for the stethoscope to pick up. We both know what that means.” 

 

“I know.” Barry sighed. “There was  _ very  _ little chance he wasn’t going to end up a speedster.”

 

“Has he shown any signs yet?”

 

Barry shook his head. “No. His dad used to watch for any, but I think it’ll be a few years before we see lightning. He  _ just  _ started walking a few weeks ago.” 

 

They both looked to the toddler, who was spinning in circles, trying to catch the rubber band ball that Cisco kept breaching just out of his reach. 

 

“Barry…” He didn’t turn away, but he could feel Caitlin’s eyes suddenly on him. “If I’m going to treat him, I have to ask...who is Teddy’s father? Was he a meta? Is there any kind of genetic anomaly I need to know about?”

 

“Cait…” He shook his head and averted his eyes. He couldn’t talk about it. Saying it out loud just made all of it true--made everything he did true. “I can’t. Cisco would hate me. Iris would be mad. Joe wouldn’t understand. And Len...I can’t tell him about everything that happened. I don’t know if he could live with himself if he knew.” 

 

A hand took his. When he looked up, Caitlin was giving him a sympathetic look. “I will not judge you or get angry, and I will not tell anyone whatever you tell me. Doctor-patient confidentiality.” She winked. 

 

Barry let out a shaky breath. On one hand, he just wanted all of it to go away. On the other, maybe talking about it was the best way to get that suffocating weight off his chest. “You promise?”

 

She nodded. 

 

“Okay.” He glanced back into the cortex, making sure Cisco was far enough out of earshot. “The truth is…”

 

\----------

Len hadn’t expected a big welcome when he came home--honestly, he was a little shocked that Mick had even let Lisa know he died--but he definitely hadn’t expected to have a gun pointed at him. 

 

He threw his hands up. “Whoa, whoa, whoa! It’s me!”

 

“Nice try,” she hissed, powering up her gold gun, “but Lenny died over a year ago. So, I’m going to ask one more time, and then I’m going to start turning fingers into gold.”

 

“Really, it’s me!” he argued. “When you were thirteen, you said that your first kiss was with Donnie Wallace, but really it was with Regina Lewis!” 

 

Her eyes widened, and the gun lowered. “Lenny?” 

 

“Yes!” 

 

He was nearly toppled backward as Lisa threw herself at him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Len tensed--it’d been so long since they’d shown any physical affection for each other. 

 

“Is it really you?” she whispered into his neck. Len hugged her back, forcing his tears not to fall.

 

“Yeah, Lis. It’s really me.”


End file.
